Thursday, July 29, 2010

Patriot Guard Rider down.

North Texas Rider Down. Philip Ray of Burleson was involved in a single vehicle accident this Thursday morning while traveling to a PGR mission in Waxahachie, Texas. Philip was exiting 287 onto I-35E and his bike lost traction when taking the exit in Waxahachie. Philip was following a fellow PGR (me) who was not involved in the accident but was able to summon emergency services and stayed with Philip until he was taken by Care Flight to Harris-Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth. (Would like to commend here those kind folks who stopped to render aide, thanks to all.) It appears neither speed nor weather were a factor in the accident; he was wearing his helmet (which took heavy damage) but not his gloves or jacket. Philip sustained the following injuries: Fractured right Clavicle, fractured right elbow, fractured ribs, collapsed right lung, possible fractured right hand and right foot. He also sustained numerous cuts, contusions and abrasions on his hands, face, arms, knees and upper torso. He will be undergoing surgery in the morning at Harris-Methodist Hospital in Fort Worth. Philip’s spirits are high and he has not lost his smile or his sense of humor. He was laughing and joking with the trauma team as they worked on him. Please keep Philip and his family in your prayers.

Its never good to see a fellow rider go down. (I really mean that, I saw him and the bike not make the curve and both slide across the road and into the grass on 35.) He doesn't remember exactly what happened. He told the medics the rear end tried to swap places with the front end. It can happen quick sometimes. Always heard it said that it was not if you were going to go down but rather when! Quick recovery Philip.
Windy

Friday, July 23, 2010

Who are the Patriot Guard Riders?

Who are the Patriot Guard Riders?

There were zero PGR 5 years ago. As of now, there are over 190,000. This growth has not come easy, and it is not perfect. And in case anybody misunderstands, I thought I should make it clear who the PGR are to me.

The PGR is the Hell's Angel that has held a flag for three hours in honor of a fallen solider.

The PGR is the Christian Motorcyclist Association rider that is standing next to him.

The PGR is the elderly lady with a flag draped over her walker that is standing next to him.

The PGR is the biker that will rider over 300 miles, praying to God to give him strength, so he can make it in time to have the honor of standing the flag line for the wake of a hero…Alone.

The PGR is having 250 bikes show up the next day in a town of 3500 people: Some riding hundreds of miles, staring at 0400…In the rain.

The PGR will be humbled when the color guard comes out to shake his hand for standing there alone, and tell them with confidence there will be more tomorrow.

The PGR is spending hours in a flag line in 90 degree heat, only later to find out the son of the guy standing next to you had committed suicide 6 months after returning from Iraq.

The PGR are the couple that served lunch to 286 bikers, refusing all donations. They are the grandparents of the solider that killed himself.

The PGR is “freebird57” from IL who drives around in his van, loaded with 135 flags and coolers of water and supplies for those standing the line along with him.

The PGR is the Viet Nam vet that was spit on when he returned, or the lady next to him whose brother was in the Battle of Bulge. Or it is 12 year old Taylor Batten, who had her first heart surgery at the age of 6 months. Taylor has had many surgeries in her past and will have many more in her future, which may not be that long. She is now a PFC USMC, and an honorary MI PGR Ride Captain.

The PGR is not a service group, we are not lobbyists. There are many fine organizations that do this work, and we heartily encourage your support.

The PGR is the biker that will ride over 200 miles in rain so bad he can barely see, and rides only by the taillights of those ahead of him, because the protestors will be at the funeral of PO1 Jerry Tharp in Galesburg IL. And he will not only consider it a privilege to have protestors scream in his face, shielding them form the family, but will consider it one of the proudest days of his life. And there are 329 people standing next to him feeling exactly the same way.

The PGR is the rider who could not think of any place he would rather be at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, than to stand at the gravesite of a friend’s father, on the anniversary of his passing. A father who earned the Silver Star in Korea for gallantry above and beyond the call of duty: A father whose family had no ideal what he had done and the award he had won, until they went through his belongings after his death.

If you do not fit in anywhere in the above, or you have another agenda, you might reconsider if you are in the right place. If you do, it will be my honor to stand with you anytime, anywhere.

And when the organizers of this parade ask how many PGR will be there, I will tell them there might be 100, but I will only guarantee one.

And if there is an Honor Mission for a fallen hero that I should attend, I will not be there either.

Being a PGR is not fun. It may well be one of the hardest things you will ever do.

You may have the mother of a fallen solider cry on your shoulder, thanking you for being there.

You may have a Marine, who has escorted his buddy from Afghanistan, stand at attention and salute you, with tears streaming down his f ace.

Being a PGR may not be fun, but you will never stand with better people. It may be one of the most rewarding things you will ever do, and without a doubt, it will change your life forever.

Thursday, July 22, 2010

Another thought


He is a cute little rascal, guess we'll keep him.
Everett Archer Wilkins...try that 3 times real fast!

Quick thought


Thought I might share some pics...
Don't know what they did but he didn't like it much!

Life goes on!

Well, got a new roof this week and they did it for no out of pocket expense for me! Even absorded the insurance deductable and threw in a new chimney (wood was pressed wood and it had started to rot). While they were up there I had them install a power roof vent. It had a thermostat on it and I had them set it on 90 degrees. Can already tell a difference. Hope it stays that way when I get my next electric bill! Will also get some gutter for the front porch/garage...sounds good anyway! Daughter brought home the latest addition to the clan this week also. And we now have a name...Everett Archer. Sounds kinda highbrow to me but maybe he'll grow into it. Well it must be lunch time so I'll give a break and take a break. Thanks for listening.
Windy

Tuesday, July 20, 2010

Another piece of cowboy wit!

Cookie
The cowboys all called him "cookie"; it was an appropriate dub,
'Cause he had been the one in charge of cookin' up the grub.

His day would start before sunrise, he'd be up and mixin' batter,
Them pancakes would stay with you, for these boys not much else would matter.

'Cause they had a hard day in the saddle to keep them cattle herded,
And they would try real hard not to spook 'em, 'cause they was mean if they got disconcerted.

Ol' "cookie" would break camp and then he'd leave 'em in his dust,
He'd find another campsite; to be ready for 'em was a must.

He'd have a Dutch oven full of biscuits and some gravy chocked with meat,
And when dinnertime was finally on 'em, they'd always have enough to eat.

After he'd clean up and load the chuck wagon, the routine would start again,
And he'd be off down the trail lookin' for sunset to begin.

The last meal of the day would find "cookie" goin' flat out,
He'd have steaks and beans and cornbread, he was really cookin', there was no doubt.

Now just how he managed to find new ways to fix that same ol' mess of beans,
Would always keep 'em guessin' but to complain would be downright mean.

After supper, they'd relax a bit around the ol' campfire,
'Cause the cows would all be bedded down, to keep 'em calm was their desire.

Now seems the quiet of the evenin' would get broke by a "musical interlude,"
But ol' "cookie," he'd just smile, he thought they was complimentin' his food.

Robert Lea Lovejoy

Saturday, July 17, 2010

New arrival

Well we added another to my growing list of grandkids today. His mama, daughter Autumn, went to the hospital this morning to see if they could turn the little rascal cause he was "breech", that's butt down or butt first. Well they had a little problem with that regard cause his little umbilical cord was wrapped around his little neck or was knotted up or something like that and so at 10:41am they took the little darlin' C-section. I think mama was relieved just to get on with it. Anyhow, everything worked out well for mom and kid. He's 19 1/2 inches long and weighs in at 7 lb. and 13 oz. That's heftier than big brother Lincoln was at birth but Lincoln got him by 2 inches at 21 something. Nice dark hair and long nails. Mama was drifting in and out when we were there, theys some nice drugs floating around in them hospitals, so we ain't got no name yet but whatever it is will be a doozy! Can hardly wait. Thank you Lord for prayers answered.
Windy

Friday, July 9, 2010

Interesting History

They used to use urine to tan animal skins, so families
used to all pee in a pot & then once a day it was taken &
Sold to the tannery.......if you had to do this to survive
you were "Piss Poor"

But worse than that were the really poor folk who couldn't
even afford to buy a pot......they "didn't have a pot to
piss in" & were the lowest of the low.

The next time you are washing your hands and complain
because the water temperature isn't just how you like it,
think about how things used to be. Here are some facts about
the 1500s:

Most people got married in June because they took their
yearly bath in May, and they still smelled pretty good by
June.. However, since they were starting to smell . ..... .
Brides carried a bouquet of flowers to hide the body odor.
Hence the custom today of carrying a bouquet when getting
Married.

Baths consisted of a big tub filled with hot water. The man
of the house had the privilege of the nice clean water, then
all the other sons and men, then the women and finally the
children. Last of all the babies. By then the water was so
dirty you could actually lose someone in it.. Hence the
saying, "Don't throw the baby out with the Bath water!"

Houses had thatched roofs-thick straw-piled high, with no
wood underneath. It was the only place for animals to get
warm, so all the cats and other small animals (mice, bugs)
lived in the roof. When it rained it became slippery and
sometimes the animals would slip and fall off the roof...
Hence the saying "It's raining cats and dogs."

There was nothing to stop things from falling into the
house. This posed a real problem in the bedroom where bugs
and other droppings could mess up your nice clean bed. Hence,a bed with big posts
and a sheet hung over the top afforded some protection. That's how canopy beds came into existence.

The floor was dirt. Only the wealthy had something other
than dirt. Hence the saying, "Dirt poor." The wealthy had
slate floors that would get slippery in the winter when wet,
so they spread thresh (straw) on floor to help keep their
footing. As the winter wore on, they added more thresh until,when you opened
the door, it would all start slipping outside. A piece of wood was placed in the entrance-way.
Hence: a thresh hold.

(Getting quite an education, aren't you?)

In those old days, they cooked in the kitchen with a big
kettle that always hung over the fire.. Every day they lit
the fire and added things to the pot. They ate mostly
vegetables and did not get much meat. They would eat the
stew for dinner, leaving leftovers in the pot to get cold
overnight and then start over the next day. Sometimes stew
had food in it that had been there for quite a while. Hence
the rhyme: Peas porridge hot, peas porridge cold, peas
porridge in the pot nine days old. Sometimes they could
obtain pork, which made them feel quite special. When
visitors came over, they would hang up their bacon to show
off. It was a sign of wealth that a man could, "bring home
the bacon." They would cut off a little to share with guests
and would all sit around and chew the fat.

Those with money had plates made of pewter. Food with high
acid content caused some of the lead to leach onto the food,
causing lead poisoning death. This happened most often with
tomatoes, so for the next 400 years or so, tomatoes were
considered poisonous.

Bread was divided according to status. Workers got the burnt
bottom of the loaf, the family got the middle, and guests
got the top, or the upper crust.

Lead cups were used to drink ale or whiskey. The combination
would Sometimes knock the imbibers out for a couple of days.
Someone walking along the road would take them for dead and
prepare them for burial. They were laid out on the kitchen
table for a couple of days and the family would gather around and eat
and drink and wait and see if they would wake up.
Hence the custom of holding a wake.

England is old and small and the local folks started running
out of places to bury people. So they would dig up coffins
and would take the bones to a bone-house, and reuse the
grave. When reopening these coffins, 1 out of 25 coffins
were found to have scratch marks on the inside and they
realized they had been burying people alive... So they would
tie a string on the wrist of the corpse, lead it through the
coffin and up through the ground and tie it to a bell.
Someone would have to sit out in the graveyard all night
(the graveyard shift.) to listen for the bell; thus, someone
could be, saved by the bell or was considered a dead ringer.

Tuesday, July 6, 2010

Politics?

Whether its real or not, I liked the sentiment.

April 17, 2009
The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Avenue
Washington, DC 20500


Mr. Obama:

I have had it with you and your administration, sir. Your conduct on
your recent trip overseas has convinced me that you are not an adequate
representative of the United States of America collectively or of me
personally.

You are so obsessed with appeasing the Europeans and the Muslim world that
you have abdicated the responsibilities of the President of the United
States of America . You are responsible to the citizens of the United
States . You are not responsible to the peoples of any other country on
earth.

I personally resent that you go around the world apologizing for the United
States telling Europeans that we are arrogant and do not care about their
status in the world. Sir, what do you think the First World War and the
Second World War were all about if not the consideration of the peoples of
Europe ? Are you brain dead? What do you think the Marshall Plan was all
about? Do you not understand or know the history of the 20th century?

Where do you get off telling a Muslim country that the United States
does not consider itself a Christian country? Have you not read the
Declaration of Independence or the Constitution of the United States ? This
country was founded on Judeo-Christian ethics and the principles governing
this country, at least until you came along, come directly from this
heritage. Do you not understand this?

Your bowing to the king of Saudi Arabia is an affront to all Americans. Our
President does not bow down to anyone, let alone the king of Saudi Arabia ..
. You didn't show Great Britain , our best and one of our oldest allies, the
respect they deserve yet you bow down to the king of Saudi Arabia .. How
dare you, sir! How dare you!

You can't find the time to visit the graves of our greatest generation
because you don't want to offend the Germans but make time to visit a mosque
in Turkey ...... You offended our dead and every veteran when you give
the Germans more respect than the people who saved the German people from
themselves. What's the matter with you? I am convinced that you and the
members of your administration have the historical and intellectual depth of
a mud puddle and should be ashamed of yourselves, all of you.

You are so self-righteously offended by the big bankers and the American
automobile manufacturers yet do nothing about the real thieves in this
situation, Mr. Dodd, Mr. Frank, Franklin Raines, Jamie Gorelic, the Fannie
Mae bonuses, and the Freddie Mac bonuses. What do you intend to do about
them? Anything? I seriously doubt it.

What about the U.S. House members passing out $9.1 million in bonuses to
their staff members on top of the $2..5 million in automatic pay raises that
lawmakers gave themselves? I understand the average House aide got a 17%
bonus. I took a 5% cut in my pay to save jobs with my employer. You haven
t said anything about that. Who authorized that? I surely didn't!

Executives at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac will be receiving $210 million in
bonuses over an eighteen-month period, that's $45 million more than the AIG
bonuses. In fact, Fannie and Freddie executives have already been awarded
$51 million not a bad take. Who authorized that and why haven't you
expressed your outrage at this group who are largely responsible for the
economic mess we have right now?

I resent that you take me and my fellow citizens as brain-dead and not
caring about what you idiots do. We are watching what you are doing and we
are getting increasingly fed up with all of you.

I also want you to know that I personally find just about everything you do
and say to be offensive to every one of my sensibilities. I promise you
that I will work tirelessly to see that you do not get a chance to spend two
terms destroying my beautiful country.

Sincerely,

Every real American